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Chapter 330

After finally shaking off Bellion Krevard, who had been stubbornly clinging to me, I returned to Cascadia.

As the supervising professor, there wasn’t really much I had to do.

As long as I memorized the necessary procedures and got familiar with the local geography, that would be enough.

In truth, a supervising professor was more of a chaperone—someone to keep the students safe and make sure they didn’t stray off course.

Besides, most of the actual work was something Spear Saint would handle himself.

Which meant, frankly speaking, I wasn’t all that important on this trip.

Even if some emergency cropped up, as long as Spear Saint was around, it wouldn’t be a serious issue.

But for some reason, the headmaster insisted I go along.

Whether it was because he was worried Spear Saint might cause trouble,

or because he knew something I didn’t—I had no idea.

Time passed quickly, and soon our journey toward the destination began.

Normally, we’d use a teleport gate, but unfortunately, the venue for this exchange event was in a location without one.

Our destination was Valtosma, a neutral nation at the far western edge of the Central Continent—

a country famed for its breathtaking scenery.

Each of the two academies held exchange events at fixed sites,

one on the Western Continent and one on the Central.

This year, it was the Central Continent’s turn to host.

The event’s cycle was once every four years,

between the Empire’s Academy of the Central Continent and Kona Academy of the West.

There used to be participation from the Eastern Continent’s university as well,

but relations had soured long ago, and no further exchanges were held.

At any rate, the procession of carriages departed under the command of Spear Saint Bellion Krevard, heading for Valtosma.

I’d heard rumors that we’d be traveling aboard an enormous carriage pulled by hyper griffons prepared by the academy.

I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes, so I couldn’t say for sure.

In my case, though, I was running late—Melissa had to take care of some urgent matters in the territory,

and I stayed behind to handle them in her stead.

But as supervising professor, there was nothing that required my immediate presence,

so the academy simply asked that I join them later.

“Of all days to be delayed…”

Suppressing a yawn of boredom, I stamped the documents one after another.

“Brother… are you very tired?”

My youngest sister asked from across the desk, resting her chin in her hands, eyes full of concern.

I gave a small chuckle.

“No, not really. Are you done studying?”

“Yes! Now Grivy, Sur, and Serqet and I are going on a picnic!”

Arsha’s bright smile made it clear—her old wounds had almost fully healed.

She still had traces of separation anxiety, but thanks to Lispa Elde’s regular music therapy,

her mind was mending beautifully.

“Are you really sure you’ll be all right?”

“Yes. I can wait alone now, just fine.”

“Good. I’ll try to come home every two days at least.”

“Take care, Brother.”

She stepped forward and wrapped herself around me in a gentle hug.

Feeling her small warmth, I patted her back lightly.

“Stay strong, Brother.”

“I will. Thank you, Arsha.”

Her smile alone was enough to give me strength.

Though, truthfully, I wasn’t exactly thrilled about the sudden pile of extra work.

By the time I finished handling all the paperwork for the territory, it was already late at night.

Arsha, tired from playing all day with Grivy, Sur, and Serqet, had long since fallen asleep.

After putting the last of the documents away, I spoke to the head butler.

“If anything serious happens, contact me immediately.”

“Yes, Young Master.”

“Good work.”

“Please be careful on your trip. If something happens, I’ll help however I can.”

“Would you just go home already?”

Lispa Elde had lately taken to lounging around the mansion far too often.

Whenever Luna saw her, she’d threaten to beat her out with a “No Doves Allowed” sign,

but Lispa would nimbly dodge and somehow always end up beside me.

“I wish I could go with you.”

She took hold of my arm.

“But I know you wouldn’t want that. So don’t worry and go.”

Her smile was soft and radiant.

“If it’s something that helps you, I’ll do anything.”

Her way of loving was… unique.

Touching, but heavy all the same.

“…Just don’t break any of the church relics in the mansion.”

“Hehe. I’ll try.”

She said that, but knowing her temper,

if she saw a holy statue or an angelic relic, she’d probably smash it to dust again.

When Luna’s presence approached, Lispa squeaked an “Eek!” and vanished in an instant.

After Luna entered my room, I packed what little luggage I needed,

and together we mounted the Shadow Dragon, Baril.

“Let’s go.”

Whooosh!

Baril’s massive wings flapped once,

and in the next moment, the ground shot away beneath us like a fired bullet.

For a while, I simply watched the rapidly shrinking land below.

Once we broke through the clouds, the world above was a serene ocean of moonlight.

The sky stretched wide,

and beneath us lay a sea of clouds glowing under the silvery light.

Thousands, millions of stars glittered so brightly it felt like night had turned to day.

Riding Baril as he sped through the heavens,

I gazed silently at the celestial expanse before me.

Among those stars were newborn ones—

younger even than me.

It was strange, thinking of how different this life was from my last.

Luna leaned quietly against my back,

looking up at the same sky.

Though the winds tore past us at incredible speed,

none of it seemed to touch us—

as if the air itself was bending around our space.

“Leon.”

“Yeah?”

“…Never mind.”

She chuckled playfully.

I turned my head toward her instead of replying.

Without a word, I gathered my courage.

She didn’t resist.

Her soft lips brushed against mine, fleeting but real.

Neither of us spoke afterward.

Blushing furiously, she looked down, eyes darting.

And I—

said nothing more until we reached our destination.

* * *

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In Valtosma, the neutral nation,

stood a massive facility built specifically for exchange events.

Originally, it had been a royal estate—

but after the Empire purchased the land long ago, it was converted for public use.

Its architecture still bore the marks of its luxurious past.

Given the importance of the intercontinental event, security was strict.

Aside from supervising professors, Valtosma provided both funds and manpower

to ensure neither academy could gain military advantage.

The rule was simple:

You may bring your students, but not your army.

Of course, that meant someone like Spear Saint—a walking weapon—shouldn’t have been allowed.

But his “Star” title alone overrode such concerns.

The venue was nestled deep within a lush forest,

a place of such beauty it could only be called nature’s masterpiece.

One could tell the Valtosma royals had loved this place dearly.

At the center stood the main hall and banquet chamber,

with two residential wings—

one for the Empire’s Academy, and the other for Kona Academy of the West.

Naturally, my destination was the Imperial Academy’s lodging.

Even the dormitory itself was extravagant,

complete with recreational halls and mini-banquet rooms—

enough to make one think there’d be no need to interact outside the main event.

To avoid drawing attention,

I landed Baril in a secluded grove and dismissed the summoning.

“This place is still as beautiful as ever,”

Luna murmured.

“You’ve been here before?”

“Leon, do you know why this land alone is so breathtaking?”

“Probably just natural coincidence—one in a million chance, right?”

She chuckled.

“This is a battlefield. What you see here was born from war’s aftermath— its scars hardened by time.”

What had once been hellishly tragic and ugly had become something hauntingly beautiful.

“Who was the war between?”

“The Archangel, Michael. And the descendants of Babylon—humans who defied God.”

Ah.

The humans who reached for divinity and were punished for it.

I’d read about them in ancient chronicles.

Humans who rebelled against God,

and the Archangel who judged them.

“I didn’t know that.”

“It was a long time ago. The foolish humans were destroyed, their traces erased… but the cataclysm Michael unleashed remained, and became this.”

If any historian heard her say that,

they’d drool at the chance to record the living testimony of history itself.

After all, she’d been there.

When we finished admiring the scenery,

I finally entered the building where the Empire’s Academy members were gathered.

“Halt. No unauthorized entry.”

A guard blocked our path—it was one of Valtosma’s soldiers.

“I’m a supervising professor from the Imperial Academy. I should’ve been reported as a late arrival.”

I showed him my academy insignia.

He examined it closely, then gave me a puzzled look.

“You seem… rather young for a professor.”

“There’s no age limit on teaching, is there?”

He nodded.

“Fair enough. Please enter. And do note—curfew begins at ten. It’s for your safety. There’ve been rumors of ghosts in the forest lately.”

I couldn’t help a small laugh.

In a world where banshees and wraiths were real, ghost stories were hardly rare.

Passing through the guards, I stepped inside the building.

A grand hall opened before me,

and in its center sat several familiar faces on a large sofa.

“Ah, Professor!”

Ashuria greeted me brightly.

“Le… Leon Cascadia…”

Basara Krevard, on the other hand, flinched at the sight of me.

I also spotted Lishia Hevilion and Carnivel Licentra—

but no sign of Melissa.

“Ashuria, where’s Melissa?”

“She went sightseeing nearby.”

“Isn’t there a curfew?”

“She asked us to keep it a secret.”

So the little troublemaker was already causing problems.

Still, she wasn’t the type to get hurt easily,

so I let it slide.

“Good to see you all. I’m Leon Cascadia, your supervising professor for this exchange.”

Basara bowed stiffly, visibly tense.

The other two simply looked at me curiously.

“Anyway, you’ve all worked hard getting here. The main events start tomorrow afternoon, so rest well and loosen up.”

“Um…”

A boy raised his hand—Carnivel Licentra,

the disciple of the Swordmaster of Rotorius.

“Yes?”

“About training…”

“What training? If you’re thinking of doing drills today, forget it. You’ll rest.”

“But I—”

“Didn’t the grandfather tell you the same thing?”

Carnivel frowned, unconvinced,

but Basara—Spear Saint’s grandson—intervened.

“Listen to the professor. If both my grandfather and he say the same, there’s a reason.”

That was… odd.

He never used to be so cooperative.

When I gave him a questioning look,

he awkwardly coughed and turned away.

Maybe he’d matured a bit at the academy.

“Anyway, don’t overthink things. Rest for today. If you need anything, call me. By the way—where’s Elder Spear Saint?”

“He said something urgent came up. Told us you’d handle things in his absence. Said he wasn’t sure if he’d be back soon.”

That damned old man.

Smiling politely, I ground my teeth.

Skipping out on duty—how unprofessional.

I activated the artifact that linked directly to the headmaster.

“Elder Spear Saint—no, that old geezer—has disappeared.”

The headmaster sighed.

“Ah… I suspected as much.”

“What’s going on?”

“Nothing too serious, I hope. Tell me, Leon—why do you think I sent both you and the Elder? If nothing was amiss, he wouldn’t have left. It seems matters are getting complicated.”

Well, considering my strength, it made sense.

“What kind of trouble?”

“The Pinas Archipelago. There’s word they might attempt something during the exchange.”

The Pinas Archipelago… and on top of that, the Cult and Nyala still in play?

Pinas had crossed paths with Arsha before.

No way I could take that lightly.

But the cult and Nyala’s movements weren’t yet public knowledge—

so the Pinas faction must be acting alone.

Those island bastards really couldn’t stay still.

“Still, don’t worry too much. As long as the Elder’s name holds weight, they won’t dare act rashly.”

Great.

Between the cult, the outer dimensional beings,

and now Pinas—

this exchange event was going to be a real mess.

As for any smaller incidents inside the venue—

well, I had a certain troublemaker who could handle those just fine.

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